The vitality of a nation is deeply intertwined with the vigor of its youth, making youth affairs a strategic priority. Since China entered a new era, its youth have engaged with the world with unprecedented breadth and depth. They actively participate in international affairs, demonstrating a level of rationality, tolerance, confidence, and self-reliance seldom seen before. This article adopts an interdisciplinary approach, integrating pragmatics with news discourse. Employing a literature review and a mixed-methods design that combines quantitative and qualitative analysis, it examines how language is employed in China Daily to construct and project the image of Chinese youth. The study finds that the newspaper’s discourse strategically adheres to collaborative and appropriateness principles to foster a positive and influential youth image. In the process of adhering to pragmatic principles, news reports have successfully shaped multiple positive images of contemporary Chinese youth: they are not only deeply engaged in social affairs and shoulder the responsibility of promoting national development, but also play the role of cooperators in international exchanges.